What does Donald Trump’s transition period indicate about his presidency?

After a divisive, controversial and surprising presidential election campaign left the country with its most unpopular president-elect in modern history, there has already been much talked about the prospect of Donald Trump not completing his full first term. As a result, the national line of succession, a topic usually reserved for royal families, was arguably more relevant for the presidency than ever.

With talk of Russian election hacking still in the air along with a new suit for defamation, Trump’s inauguration Friday has even been preceded by talk of possible impeachment. Such an outcome would be a first in presidential history, however. While President Richard Nixon may well have been on the way to being impeached, he resigned before it came to pass.

Still, when President Gerald Ford was sworn into office in 1974, he was the most recent of nine vice-presidents to have ascended to the presidency in the middle of a president’s term. Other than Nixon, all were as a result of the president’s untimely death.

If something legal or medical in nature were to befall Trump over the next four years, then Vice-President-elect Mike Pence would be the man to take his place in the White House. Yet, for those concerned by Trump’s hard-right policies, the former governor of Indiana was unlikely to provide any solace, given his staunchly conservative stances on issues like abortion and LGBT rights.